Isle Listen Official Launch
September 26, 2019
Children and young people are benefiting from an important new initiative recently launched by an established mental health charity on the Isle of Man.
MCH Psychological Services (formerly Manx Cancer Help) has changed its constitution in response to identified needs and can now provide mental health education and support for school pupils as well as the specialist therapies they provide for people with cancer.
The Isle Listen initiative focuses on prevention and early intervention work aimed at improving the emotional wellbeing of our children and young people- a pilot year supported by the Scheinberg family and the Elizabeth Clucas Trust is already underway in 2 secondary schools and will begin shortly in their associate primaries. Plans are in place to roll out the initiative across the Island in subsequent years, subject to funding.
The Isle Listen team deliver age appropriate workshops and assemblies covering issues that can affect mental health and wellbeing – and specially trained mentors provide a listening service for young people who are struggling to cope with low level stress and anxiety, with referral to other agencies where necessary. The framework has been developed, and all training delivered, by accredited mental health clinicians who also provide supervision for the mentors working in schools.
The launch event highlighted the negative or positive impact that environmental factors can have on mental wellbeing with mood lighting, effects, images and sound designed by Bold Consultancy, with technical expertise supplied by ELS Isle of Man.
Lloyds Bank International and Parent2Parent generously sponsored the launch at the Villa Marina, which was attended by around 120 people and included an engaging and informative Q & A with members of the Isle Listen team.
Andrea Chambers, CEO of MCH Psychological Services said “ A huge thank you to all who made the launch event possible and I must also pay tribute to the passion and dedication of the Isle Listen team in bringing this initiative to fruition despite numerous challenges over the past 18 months”
The potential scope and future of Isle Listen is reliant upon community engagement and substantial funding. Anybody with an interest in supporting the initiative through corporate sponsorship or a fundraising event is very welcome to contact jessica@il_backup.test or call 679118.